My main problem with peas for years has been BIRDS. Cross your fingers that they will be safe this year. I have rigged up all sorts of bird netting. One year TWICE I had to lift up the bird netting to let a bird OUT. Had managed to wiggle under somehow but couldn't get out. Thought about clubbing it and leaving it there dead as an example to the other birds, but am too much of a bird lover. Some birds love pea plants and eat them all up. I used to blame rabbits, but one day I sat in a chair under a tree after surgery, read and watched the garden all day. It was starlings snipping off and wolfing down my baby pea plants. Also, if your seed gets too old you won't get good germination. I used the soaking in water for hours first method and that seemed to have worked pretty well. My peas were planted on Earth Day and are about an inch tall now. Marcia

Well, now I'm questioning my supposition, Reefisher. Usually, powdery mildew is a late season problem in my garden. Many plants get it but squash & melons seem to be the most susceptible. The peas from an April planting are long gone by late Summer/early Autumn but the vines have some mildew by the time they are pulled in July. Planting Oregon SugarPod in August doesn't really allow for pod development here - therefore, we are just growing them for the tendrils. They don't get tall enuf before frosts begin (usually after mid-September) to even require a trellis. Older bean plants also get mildew but the ground for early peas usually provides a home for a July planting of green beans. Seems to work without much trouble altho' if I run very late into the month - frost may kill the beans before I get a crop. If your March crop got mildew in May, I think you've just found that this variety prefers Autumn growing conditions. Maybe, we can "tear a page from your garden notebook" and plant Ho Lan Dow late. I don't see a "VPs003" behind the name but Stokes sells Ho Lan Dow - which means I don't really have an excuse for not giving 'em a try over all these years of pea-pickin'. I've got to say that your temps in December look to be warmer than ours were in late September but . . . you never can tell. Steve

Our snow pea season is rapidly coming to a hiatus, Paul. There are very hot and dry conditions here. We picked what may be the last of the pods yesterday from the 3rd planting and it has been a couple weeks since we've felt it worthwhile to remove any tendrils. When the weather begins to cool with a couple of good rain storms in late August, more OR Sugar Pod seed will go into the ground. By then, it will be too late to get many pods (some years - none). Our 1st frost may not come before October but a generally dry and cooling September slows down the peas for much growth. The tendrils off one or two-foot high plants may be all we can hope for. Nevertheless, as a tasty salad vegetable - that's quite nice. And, since the plants don't grow very tall, there's no need to build another trellis. Steve

I agree with the recommendation for yardlong beans; kids are fascinated by them. The variety "Chinese Red Noodle" would be especially interesting, since it has attractive, deep burgundy-purple pods. It really thrives on heat, too... which would be a plus, given your location. Another variety, "Taiwan Black", has very long pods, some of which can actually be close to 3 feet long when mature. Both are pole varieties, you can get them from Baker Creek. Another bean that would be interesting would be winged bean (Psophocarpus tetragonolobus); and since it is a tropical bean, it is especially well-suited to Florida climate. The flowers are very attractive, the 4-sided beans are unusual, and all parts of the plant are edible. You can get seed from the non-profit ECHO, which is also located in Florida. Don't know how well common beans would do there; but a mixture of green, purple, and yellow-podded varieties would be really eye-catching. Some companies even offer a mix, I think Parks had one. Good point about the limas, Happy. Don't know the age of the children, or the degree of adult supervision... but if potential toxicity is not an issue, there are two other candidates I would recommend. Both have the added advantage of being tropical: - Sword Bean (Canavalia gladiata) has rampant vines, and some of the largest pods (up to 3" wide & over a foot long) of any bean. Kitazawa Seeds carries them. Kids like big, and these are probably the largest bean seeds you can grow. - Hyacinth bean (Dolichos lablab) has very large vines, beautiful fragrant flowers, and unusual clusters of flat pods. Kitazawa & Baker Creek both carry several varieties. Most of my recommendations have one thing in common - they are pole varieties. I agree with George, kids are really drawn to climbing beans. Some of these (such as sword bean, hyacinth bean, & the more rampant pole limas) will climb very high. You might consider raising a 10-foot pole with strings attached, then tying off the hanging strings to stakes at the bottom to form a tee-pee. This could be an impressive sight when filled with vines. Having said all this... have you contacted the Florida Master Gardeners? They would probably be happy to help, and could recommend the best varieties (and planting times) for your area. They might also be able to direct you to local sources, and perhaps even provide you with free seed.